I AM The Mother

I am the mother of Corban White, the fatality in this intoxicated driver crash, I am Genny White. These are the words that I began my victim impact statement with for the sentencing hearing in the matter of the drunk driver that killed my daughter. The perfunctory outline given to prepare for such a statement began with tell the judge who you are. “I am the mother,” I began that, it is who I am. I’m not sure what those words mean in today’s society; however, I do understand that there is some power associated with them. I recall advocating for a mother-to-be who wanted to utilize the services of a birth center and her insurance carrier was dragging its feet in approving her request. I found myself in conversation with a representative of her insurance carrier and to make the most of this scenario I began to highlight the cost savings to the company for providing a maternity service that was as safe if not safer than delivering in a traditional hospital setting, when the birthing mother was a low risk client as this mother was. As I discharged my bear-shot to this now tongue-tied associate, he mustered out, “Now who are you?” My response was “I am a Mother!” — a mother who successfully has given birth with this group of outstanding Nurse Midwives in the freestanding birth center that your subscriber also desires to birth in. All of a sudden this confident individual became the proverbial child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. It was “Yes Ma’am, we will see what we can do for Mrs. So and So and to realize this percentage of savings for our group.” Mrs. So-and-So’s request to give birth at the birth center was approved and I don’t know what happened to our representative from the insurance industry. But that day he got his hand out of the cookie jar and did what was right for his customer and the insurance company.

I told the judge at the sentencing that I am the Mother and the defendant was sentenced to the most stringent of sentences, for the crime of driving under the influence and killing someone, that had been handed down in Orange County, CA for at least the last two years or maybe longer. Mothers you have power, you can effect change. You can give birth the way you want to and where you want to. Say it with me. I am the Mother.

Thoughts

Men who care about pregnancy and support childbirth show love to their family. These are the seeds of a great beginning. Men who want to be great dads and mates will take the time to learn their place in this most important time of life.